StayPuft & Batman
by LemonSupreme
Summary: The Patriot War is over, and the Nano has been defeated. While Miles & Charlie worry over Rachel who was injured fighting in Idaho, Bass decides to get drunk. When Aaron joins him at the bar, Bass expects nothing – certainly not the birth of a friendship. All Audiences Charloe-ish


**Prologue (AKA backstory - the way the locals would tell it)**

The War between Texas and the so-called "Patriots" lasted approximately five months. Miles lost more than a little money on a bet because of it. He'd been sure it would go at least six, whereas an overly cocky Bass Monroe was just as confident that it would be less.

Regardless, the war is over, and thank God – or whoever you want to thank – because it had not been good. Not that war is ever good, but this one was particularly bloody and awful. Texas had won by the skin of their teeth, thanks in large part to the fearless leadership of two former Generals who really craved retirement a lot more than a reunion tour, but joined the cause anyway.

Blood was spilt - a lot of it - and now the Texas flag flies high from the fall out zone in the East to the border of the wastelands. Texas has made their intentions clear. They want the whole she-bang – from sea to shining sea. They're patient and they have more manpower and more firepower than California and the Wastelands put together so it's just a matter of time. Everyone (even those granola eaters in Cali) knows that Texas will prevail.

Bass and Miles don't care and they told the powers that be exactly how they felt about the subject. Texas can go fight for whatever they want, but they'll be doing it minus Generals Monroe and Matheson. Both are feeling older than their years, and want to relax now that they finally feel they can. They've earned the right to sit back and watch the younger generation do their thing.

The Patriot War wasn't even over yet when all that craziness in Idaho had come to a head. Most people didn't know what to think of it, but Rachel and Aaron had jumped in head first, assuming (correctly) that the Nano was behind it all. Priscilla had went along, because by then she and Aaron were back to being a true couple – all lovey dovey and googley eyed.

It wasn't until the Idaho business was all over and the group returned to Willoughby that anyone knew Connor was even still alive. Bass Monroe's kid had left Texas a frustrated boy. He came back a broken man, but a hero just the same.

When they all had returned from Idaho – a full year after the Patriot War was over, it had been an unusual home coming indeed. Aaron had been driving the wagon, Priscilla riding shotgun. Lying in the back, side by side were Rachel Matheson and Connor Bennett. At first glance, Miles and Bass both thought their respective loved ones were dead. Panic had been narrowly avoided when an exhausted Aaron deadpanned, "Don't bury them just yet you drama queens. They're just injured - not dead."

Connor had surprised Rachel and Aaron when he'd shown up in Bradbury and told them he wanted to join their cause. In the end he was a big part of the reason the Nano was defeated. Connor's back was broken in one of the final battles in Idaho and he won't ever walk again, but that doesn't stop him from running his mouth non-stop. He is, after all, his father's son. And don't you feel sorry for him either. Between his new hero status and that Monroe sex appeal, the girls flock to him like bees to honey - even if that honey is tooling around Willoughby in a wheel chair. Anyway - that young fella is doing just fine.

Rachel just barely missed meeting the grim reaper when Connor saved her life. Her head injury was actually fairly serious, though Gene feels she will recover in time. For now she drifts in and out of consciousness. When she is awake, she seems to think she's still in high school and keeps telling Gene he looks old. The doctor is happy to have his daughter back, but is at least somewhat worried about her memory and if or when it will return.

I know what you're thinking. Where is Charlie? Is she dead? Injured? Tell me about Charlie already!

Don't you worry about her either. Charlotte Matheson is very much alive and well. In fact, it is her likeness you will now see on the side of every freshly minted Texas dollar. Well, ha! I bet you didn't see that coming did you?

You see, while Miles was off leading the charge in the Dallas Bloodbath; Charlie fought alongside Bass Monroe in the battles of Houston, San Antonio and Corpus Christi. It was at the Alamo of all damn places that she sealed her fate in Texas lore, showing the world once and for all that Miles was not the only warrior Matheson in town. She and Bass had led their motley group of soldiers against a much larger bunch of Patriots, and won handily. No, they didn't just win. It was a massacre, and the Patriots never did recover from it. That day marked the beginning of the end of the Patriot War. Bass had been taken captive somewhere in the middle of the battle, but Charlie forged on. In fact, if you ask anyone who was there – they'll tell you her fury at Bass being captured was the last straw. She showed no mercy, and when it was over she freed him herself, earning her the nickname The Alamo Hellcat.

After the dust settled and the blood was washed from their bodies, Bass and Charlie did the thing that they'd both been thinking about for over a year and half… they fell into a big soft bed and didn't come out for a week. Turned out that there was a heck of a lot of bottled up tension they needed to work thorough and so they did that… you know, a lot. After the Alamo, there was no turning back. Bass and Charlie were together in every sense of the word from then on out.

They aren't married. What's the point? But everyone knows that they are a unit, a couple, a 'to the end of time' kind of duo that doesn't need a 'stupid piece of paper' (Charlie's words) or a 'dumb ceremony' (his words). No matter, the bottom line is that life is good for those too. It's really very good.

Miles was managing just fine as well. That is right up till his girlfriend – the very love of his life - came back from saving the world and doesn't remember him. At all. That's gotta be hard on anyone, but for Miles it's a mixed blessing. She doesn't remember the good stuff, and that's sad, but she doesn't remember the awful stuff either. Miles takes some comfort from that, but he wonders what the future might hold… For now he's hoping to charm this woman he loves, praying that they can find a way back to something they had, or maybe forward to something new.

And that brings us to what happened today…

**The Here and Now – Willoughby Texas – A bar with no name**

Bass Monroe is drinking whiskey from a glass that he suspects has not been washed recently or maybe ever. He takes comfort in the fact that this rank swill he's drinking is going to kill any germ in its path before it could ever make him sick. Shrugging, he takes another drink. Charlie is off visiting with her Mom. Miles is there too. Even though Rachel doesn't remember any of them or their history; Bass knows it's not a place for him. So here he sits, wasting time till his woman comes to get him and takes him home.

He smiles, his lips against the foggy glass. Home. Anywhere Charlie is – that's home to Bass now. He wonders now how he managed to wait so long to tell her how he felt. He wonders why they wasted so much time apart. Doesn't matter though. Not now. They are together, and together they fill in each other's blanks. They fix each other's broken pieces. They are soul mates. Geez, he thinks, shaking his head. When did he become such a girl?

Motioning for the bartender to refill his glass, he senses a presence beside him and looks up in time to see Aaron Pittman take a seat.

"Staypuft." He says with a nod.

"Asshole." Aaron says in response, and then to the bartender, he says, "I'll have what he's having."

Bass can't help but grin a little. They aren't friends by any stretch but he did miss Pittman's wise cracks and his dry sense of humor. "Got kind of caught up in having my kid back, and didn't thank you properly, but thanks, you know – for taking care of him. Couldn't have been easy."

"Yeah, well he's a good kid. I know you guys have had your problems, or whatever; but when things got rough for us in Bradburry…" Aaron takes a deep drink. "Well, let's just say he is the reason we came back at all. He needs anything, ever – you just let me know."

Bass nods solemnly, "I heard he saved Rachel?"

"Yep. Dove in front of a bullet meant for her. Got him square in the back. Second bullet still grazed Rachel's head, but Connor had knocked her down so her injury wasn't as bad as it would have been." Aaron stares into his glass. Clearly this is a rough topic for him.

Bass still has a question. "Who was it that shot them? Anyone we know?"

"Well, it was the damn Nano of course, but that particular time the Nano was wearing its Tom Neville suit."

Bass snarls at the familiar name. "What happened to him?"

"I hit him on the head while he was trying to get a third shot off, and well, he died."

"What did you hit him with?" Bass asks, sensing there's a story there.

"An axe." Aaron shudders at the memory. "It was awful. If I'd have thought it through, I probably wouldn't have even done it, but he'd just tried to kill my friends and the axe was just sitting there, and honestly I'd just had it. That damn Nano has controlled my life for far too long, and messed with my head and messed with my friends. Connor and Rachel were both just lying there, and there was all this blood and I was sure they were dead. I felt this rage come over me like I can't even explain and my whole body just shook with it and the next thing I know I'm reducing what used to be Tom Neville to a pulp." He shivers.

Bass can't help but smile a little: not at the thought of the gruesome end for Neville, but the image he now has in his mind of the geeky Aaron Pittman wielding a bloody axe.

"It's not funny." Aaron frowns. "It was disgusting and I wish I didn't have to remember it at all."

Bass shrugs, "You're looking at it all wrong. You saved their lives. You saved my kid's life. You saved Charlie's Mom. So it was messy? Sure. So what. Battle always is messy. Doesn't matter. They are still here because you were the man."

Aaron turns to Bass, "I'm THE MAN? I don't know whether to be embarrassed or flattered. The 'Scourge of Scranton' just called ME the man."

"'Scourge of Scranton' was so ten years ago." Bass chuckles. "Now I'm known as the 'Hellion of Houston'. It's got a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Aaron nods with a smile, "Yeah it does I guess. Heard Charlie made a name for herself in a battle too."

Bass smiles remembering, "Yeah, she sure did, my little Alamo Hellcat. She's an amazing woman."

Something about the way he says this causes Aaron to look at him more closely. His glass stops halfway to his lips. "So you two are what, friends now?" The genuine grin that spreads across Bass' face tells Aaron far more than he really wanted to know. "No." Aaron says simply as realization dawns.

"Oh yes. She's my lady Pittman. You're gonna have to get used to it."

Aaron is staring, his mouth hanging agape. Finally he collects himself, "But she's Charlie and you're… you're YOU." He shakes his head, clearly unable to grasp this new reality. "Does Miles know?"

Bass frowns at him, "Well, of course he knows, idiot. We've been together since the war ended. We have a little house on the West end of town. We have joint credit at the general store. We have Miles over for dinner every Friday night. Hey you can come too." Bass shrugs then, "It's true that Miles wasn't on board right away…"

Aaron's eyes are still wide, "What? He wasn't shipping team Charloe right off the bat?" his voice drips with sarcasm.

"What the hell is a charloe?" Bass asks, sounding thoroughly irritated now.

"Oh come on. I know you were a soldier and a jock and whatever else tough guys are, but surely you shipped couples back in the day?" Bass shakes his head no. Aaron forges on, "Oh come on Monroe." Aaron racks his brain for a good example, and holds a hand up when he thinks of one, "Twilight! Did you ever watch those vampire movies?"

"Are you kidding me right now?" Bass sounds disgusted, but Aaron sees a faint blush creeping up the former General's cheeks.

"A-ha!" Aarons cries out, "You did like those movies. I knew it! So, which team were you on? Team Edward or Team Jacob?"

Bass takes another drink and mumbles something.

"What did you say?"

"Well, if you must know," Bass frowns clearly embarrassed, "I didn't like either one. I suppose if I was on any team it was Team Bella." Now Bass' frown morphs into something lascivious. "Truth is I had a bit of a crush on Kristen Stewart. Team Bass would have had a nice ring to it..." He raises and lowers his eyebrows suggestively.

Aaron can't help but laugh out loud. After he settles down, he orders another drink. "Okay so the other way to look at the team stuff was mixing the names of the two you like together. So it could have been Bedward or Becab for example."

"Or Bassella?" Bass is getting into it now, and grinning.

Aaron rolls his eyes, "Yes Bassella."

"So Charloe is Charlie and Monroe?"

Aaron nods. "Yes. Exactly."

Bass thinks about it for a moment, "Well, Miles definitely didn't like ship Charloe as you call it. At first he was sailing the good ship HellNo." Bass laughs at his own little joke and realizes he's getting kind of drunk. "Now that Miles has watched us together, and gotten used to it, he sees it's a good thing. He approves."

"Seriously never would have expected you two to end up together." He shakes his head, "Like ever ever ever."

"Hell Aaron, I never expected any of this. Life is crazy. We aren't promised anything. No guarantees of next year or next month or tomorrow. Gotta take happiness where you can find it." Bass empties his glass again, and motions for a refill.

"Now that is a sentiment I can get behind. Priscilla and I were so in love and then everything fell apart after the blackout and now that I have her back – I don't want to waste even one day away from her."

Bass nods, understanding. Slowly he smiles, "So you two…. Do you call yourselves Assilla?" Bass begins laughing so hard he doubles over.

Aaron frowns, "Of course not. We are Priscon." This is obviously something he has thought about before. Soon they are both laughing. Anyone watching would assume they are the oldest of friends.

They sit in a comfortable silence for a while. Finally Bass sees Aaron staring at him questioningly. "What?" Bass asks gruffly.

"You're what fifty? How old is Charlie now?"

"I am not fifty!" Bass says indignantly. "I can't believe you think I'm fifty…"

"How old are you?"

He shrugs "Forty-seven."

Aaron nods, "Okay, my bad. You're FORTY-SEVEN. Charlie is what… twenty –three?"

"She'll be twenty-five in a month." He won't meet Aaron's gaze.

"So the age difference…" Aaron isn't even sure how to ask the questions in his head.

"The age difference exists. We don't dwell on it."

They don't talk for a while again. Finally Aaron speaks, "You know I was in a May-December type relationship before the blackout. Before I met Priscilla."

Bass arches an eye brow curiously, "Oh yeah? How old were you?"

Aaron thinks about it for a minute, "Twenty-four maybe? Twenty-five? Something like that?"

"That's pretty young Pittman. Sounds like you were into some kinky illegal little girl stuff." Bass is frowning. This is apparently where he draws a line.

Aaron smirks. "Never said I was the older one Monroe."

Bass laughs, "Okay, I see what you're saying. How old was she?"

"She was sixty-one, and damn she was beautiful." He stares into space, lost in thought. "Think Sophia Loren… but without the accent. Her name was Beatrice. Her husband was my boss. She broke up with me for an even younger guy."

"Well, your age difference was a lot bigger than mine with Charlie, and it didn't bother you then."

"True, but we weren't pretending to be anything long term. Seems like you guys are?"

Bass throws his hands up. "I don't know how many ways I can explain this to you people. I love her. I loooooooooove her. She is everything to me and I don't care how old she is. I will spend the rest of my life just being with her because nothing else will ever make me happy." Bass is getting angry.

Aaron is thoughtful, but he nods slowly. "Okay."

"Okay what?" Bass' brow is furrowed and he looks tense.

"Okay I'm on board."

"What do you mean?"

Aaron raises a fist high, "Go Team Charloe!"

Bass looks even more irritated than before. "Don't play with me Aaron. This isn't funny."

"I'm not playing games Monroe. Hey, if you really love her that much, and she loves you too… who am I to quibble over some birthdays? I love Charlie. I just want her to be happy."

"Me too."

"Then I think – this one time anyway – we're on the same page."

"Thanks Man." Bass says, his expression sincere.

Aaron nods. They sit for a while, not saying anything. Without warning Aaron starts to laugh.

"What now?" Bass is exasperated.

"I was just thinking about Rachel. I bet you were pretty excited when you heard about the amnesia. No way would she be okay with all this. Like not even a little bit."

Bass tries to hide a smile, "I'll admit it was the most convenient memory loss in the history of all time."

"What happens if she figures it out? Remembers all the reasons she hates you and everything?" Aaron's smile is gone.

"Well, as we speak, Charlie and Miles are over there trying to convince her that the blackout is real and that she isn't still seventeen. We probably have some time." He pauses, "But it doesn't matter. Rachel is scary, but she's not nearly as scary as imagining my life without Charlie. We'll figure it all out whenever we need to. If Rachel can't handle it, Charlie and I will leave Willoughby."

"You'll leave, just like that?"

"My home is where Charlie is, Pittman. I don't care where we are if I'm with her. Nothing else matters."

"Wow. A lot has changed in the last couple years." Aaron shakes his head, "Seems like you kind of felt like that about Miles for a long time."

Bass takes a deep drink. "Miles is still my best friend. He's the brother I never had, and for a long time he was my only family. Now, he's still my family; but Charlie – she's more than that. Charlie is my heart."

Aaron sighs, "That's really lovely. I can tell you mean it. I really am glad for you guys." He looks a little teary eyed.

"Buck up Staypuft. Even real men like us fall in love, right?"

Aaron composes himself, "First, I like that you think we're both real men. That's a nice change. Secondly, for the love of God stop comparing me to Staypuft the Marshmallow Man!" Aaron hits the bar with his fist when he says this.

"Wow. I didn't realize it bothered you that much." Bass' eyes go wide.

"Really? Really Monroe? That's what you're going with? That you didn't realize comparing me to a mindless fat monster might in some way be offensive to me?" Aaron is pissed. "You are an idiot and sometimes you are no better than a playground bully."

"Well, in my defense I was a bully on a much larger than playground scale for many years. It's a hard habit to break, but I am sorry. I won't call you that again."

Aaron's anger deflates when he hears the sincerity in Monroe's voice. "Thanks."

"But, uh… I'm going to have to call you something."

"Gonna go out on a limb here Monroe. How about 'Aaron'?"

Bass shakes his head thoughtfully. "I like nick names. Miles and I have always used em." He just watches Aaron for a minute without saying more.

"So what's it going to be? "Michelin Man? Fat Albert? Chunk?" Aaron sounds defeated.

"Chunk?" Bass asks with a grin. "Who the hell is Chunk?"

"The fat kid from The Goonies." Aaron says as if this should be the most obvious thing ever.

"Nah. I was just thinking about how you saved my kid's life, and how you talked about getting so mad, the rage took over…"

"Yeah, what of it?"

"Was thinking maybe I have a new nick name for you after all."

"Spill it." Aaron squares his shoulders, waiting.

"I hereby declare you… Bruce Banner."

Aaron's eyes go wide, and a tiny smile appears. It grows slowly. "You read comic books?"

Bass scowls, "Of course I read comic books. I loved them. Batman was always my favorite, but I did love the Hulk."

"Me too." Aaron says with a big grin now stretching across his face. "Me too." He giggles just a little in spite of himself.

"So you think we're like friends now?" Bass asks as he notes Charlie walking through the bar's double doors.

"Well, maybe. I don't know. Can Bruce Banner and the Hellion of Houston be friends?"

Bass stands, and pats Aaron on the back. "How about we see? I got a good feeling about it."

Aaron nods, feeling pretty damn happy about it himself.

Charlie approaches. She gives Aaron a big hug. "Good to see you. Been missing you around here Aaron." She looks tired.

"You okay Hellcat?" Bass asks, concerned.

"Well it's been a long day. Mom wants me to join a Backstreet Boys fanclub - whatever the hell that is, and keeps asking me if I dye my hair and what kind of car do I drive and do I have a boyfriend and a million other things that make my head hurt. What I need right now is to go home, and crawl into bed."

Bass grins, "I can totally help you with that."

Charlie smirks, "Oh I know you can." She kisses him lightly.

Aaron watches them and he sees it. Their love for each other would be hard to miss. He smiles at them both and says, "Get out of here you two. I'll see you on Friday night."

Charlie looks at Bass questioningly.

Bass shrugs, "We decided we're gonna be friends now. I invited him over for dinner."

She laughs at both of them, and puts her arm around Bass who is a little unsteady on his feet. "Of course you did, and it will be great to have him around. The more, the merrier."

**Epilogue (the way the locals would tell it)**

Someday when they write about the Patriot War, they will mention the battles, the near misses and the losses – which were great indeed. They will mention the Alamo Hellcat and her Hellion of Houston. They will speak of the Matheson Bloodbath in Dallas, and at least as an aside – they will mention the Nano War in Idaho. Those western war stories are harder to come by as time passes. Few survived, and those who did don't want to speak of it much.

In the history of this time and these people, there will hopefully be more than just nick names and battles detailed. There will hopefully also be mentions of love and friendship.

Everyone knows the story of Miles Matheson and his oldest friend Bass Monroe. They remain the closest of friends today, sharing a morning coffee and frequently an evening whiskey as they reminisce about the old days, and the new ones as well.

Most have heard of the legendary love that grew from the ashes of a Texas battlefield, between General Monroe and his beautiful lady warrior Charlie. They never tire of each other. Sometimes they fight, but the making up is so sweet, neither even minds. Their love grows deeper every day.

Some of the lesser stories will speak of Charlie's Mother, who never quite recovered her memory of the last twenty odd years, but who managed to fall in love with Miles – again - anyway. She bakes cookies for her neighbors and she now teaches science to young children at the local school. Everyone who knows her now says she is the sweetest, kindest woman who ever lived. Miles sticks close to her side, not willing to ever lose her again.

Monroe's son Connor will also make the pages of history. His quick thinking in Idaho saved lives and helped to beat the enemy, even if it did cost him personally. He too has found love. For him it was in the arms of a young farmer's daughter. Together they raise gardens and make babies and find that even when obstacles arise, there is nothing they can't face when they face it together.

And then there is Aaron. He and his wife Priscilla have found a calling. They resurrected an old printing press, modified it to run without power, and now print and bind books for Willoughby readers and anyone else in Texas who is interested. The very first thing they printed was an original comic book about The Hulk and Batman – detailing one night when these two super heroes met in a bar and bonded over talk of ladies and cheesy movies. Aaron had written and illustrated the thing himself. Only two copies were ever made. Aaron kept one. He gave the other to his dearest friend as a joke. Both copies remain treasured to this day.

If you are ever in Willoughby on a Friday night, take a stroll down Hellcat Boulevard (as it's now called). Their house is the last one on the right. It's small and painted white. You'll know it's the right one because you'll see friends and family milling about, eating and drinking and laughing together. And on most Friday nights, after dinner is over and the fuss has died down – you'll see The Hellion of Houston and his buddy Bruce Banner, sharing a bottle of whiskey and smoking cigars.

You'll hear the laughter before you even get close enough to see their faces.

You'll hear the laughter, and you'll know in your heart that when given a chance, even the most unlikely pair can become friends.

You'll hear the laughter, and you won't be able to help yourself. You'll have to join in.

**END**

**Author's Note: Some of my very favorite Revolution scenes were those between Bass and Aaron. I've had this little story tumbling around in my head for a week and wanted to set it free before I embark on my next big chapter fic. Hopefully you'll see chapter one of that next week. I know I owe you a couple of epilogues, and you'll be getting those (and heck – maybe another one shot that just won't leave me alone) soon as well. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one, so please take a moment to review. It means so much to me to hear from you.**


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